Also, it doesn't effect Tooth and Nail. Tooth and Nail doesn't put them directly onto the battlefield from the library when entwined, it first searches for two creatures and puts them into your hand, then puts two creatures FROM YOUR HAND into play. For example, say i have Triskelion in hand. I cast Tooth and Nail entwined. I first search for Mephidross Vampire and Sundering Titan, then put Triskelion and Mephidross vampire onto the battlefield. In short, Grafdigger's Cage does nothing to Tooth and Nail. It is a very easy mistake to make, however, as who ever casts Tooth and Nail NOT entwined? It might as well be 7GG "Seach your library for 2 Creature Cards and put them into play".

Anyway... I don't see any fun in the rules that forbid tutoring overall, or play stuff from graveyard. I specifically like EDH because it's an art of building an efficient 99-card toolbox - a seemingly random deck you actually can tame and control.I just don't get where's the fun in playing all random cards. I could play with a pile of commons and it would be almost the same thing.I agree, it's an article about casual play, but I'd love to see some actually good (read: competitive) EDH ideas once in a while.

As much as houseruled bannings like these (and they are bannings, make no mistake) are supposed to make everything more fun, I've never yet found one that actually seems to do that. And this is no exception.

Sure, it's not generally fun seeing my opponents take forever to search their deck or do any of the other things Stranglehold Cage would make impossible. But it's way, way less fun being unable to effectively participate in the game because my deck has decided to hand me all of the most useless cards it contains for the current situation. So for me, tutoring effects are a major net positive; eliminating them will make my gaming experience significantly less fun.

So....the best bargain fixers (a la Terramorphic Expanse) get worse while the most expensive (Duals/Shocks) are still good.

It's not like there aren't expensive fetches or budget duals.

I get what you're trying to do, honestly, I even agree with some it...but all this does is further bend the color pie to the favor of specific colors rather than to more of them IMO.

You mean it favours red and white? The "worst colours" of EDH by popular opinion? That doesn't sound too bad.

Not that I'm sold on this house rule anyway (and it would be quite an ordeal to get it accepted in my local group even if I was). That's why I'd like to see next week's deck built using the harshest restrictions, as an experiment. This week's deck is mono-white, a colour which isn't affected all that much by the change. I want to know what you end up with when you tell a black/green/white deck not to play reanimation, tutors or fetches.

"Possibilities abound, too numerous to count."
"Innocent, unbiased observation is a myth." --- P.B. Medawar (1969) "Ever since man first left his cave and met a stranger with a different language and a new way of looking at things, the human race has had a dream: to kill him, so we don't have to learn his language or his new way of looking at things." --- Zapp Brannigan (Beast With a Billion Backs)

You must mean one other card there for the first card mentioned, otherwise that sentences makes no sense. However, T&N is not inherently harmed by Cage or Hold, only the search function is harmed by Hold. T&N, like Living Death and such, skirt the restrictions.

"Possibilities abound, too numerous to count."
"Innocent, unbiased observation is a myth." --- P.B. Medawar (1969) "Ever since man first left his cave and met a stranger with a different language and a new way of looking at things, the human race has had a dream: to kill him, so we don't have to learn his language or his new way of looking at things." --- Zapp Brannigan (Beast With a Billion Backs)

Oh, I see. Printing Grafdigger's Cage is a way to force us to enjoy the product we buy from you in the way you want us to enjoy it. Like we just couldn't set table rules like those printed on this card any time we sit down for a game of Commander. Making more and more sense as the explainations roll in. Keep it coming! :/

You must mean one other card there for the first card mentioned, otherwise that sentences makes no sense. However, T&N is not inherently harmed by Cage or Hold, only the search function is harmed by Hold. T&N, like Living Death and such, skirt the restrictions.

Defense of the Heart is the correct example I sent in (now showing as fixed in the article). Thanks again for everyone who contributed to correcting the examples!